Keith Emerson Gets Career-Spanning Box Set

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Photo via Keith Emerson family archive

Keith Emerson is being celebrated with a career-spanning 20-CD box set. The title, Variations, was released on October 13, 2023, via Spirit of Unicorn Music. The entire collection has been mastered by renowned engineer Andy Pearce. It’s available for order in the U.S. here and in the U.K. here.

Born on November 2, 1944, and considered one of the greatest keyboard players of all time, the deep dive into the creative life of Emerson is divided into five parts, beginning with his early years in The Nice and Emerson Lake & Palmer. The collection then moves onto Emerson’s solo albums, his soundtracks and collaborations. It ends with a set of live performances which present his breathtaking keyboard skills to full effect. The collection contains a previously unreleased 2004 show by the Keith Emerson Trio from the New York City club B.B. King’s.

Watch the official trailer

The collection has been curated with the full involvement and blessing of the Emerson family. Aaron Emerson, Keith’s son, said “It is with great excitement that we can share all of Dad’s great work, expanding throughout his long career. I hope it gives you as much joy as it has done for all of us.”

Photo of a young Keith Emerson via the Emerson family archive

“Keith Emerson invented progressive rock. I know because I was there at the time,” Lee Jackson (The Nice, Jackson Heights, Refugee), Emerson’s long-time friend and one-time bandmate in The Nice, once told Prog Magazine. Emerson, revered as a genius by both fans and fellow musicians alike, died on March 10, 2016, at age 71, at his Santa Monica, Calif. home. He teamed with singer-guitarist Greg Lake and drummer Carl Palmer in 1970 in ELP, following three years as a co-founder of another British prog rock band, The Nice.

The 20 CDs are presented in a special 10 x 10 inch box, accompanied by sleeve notes written by Jerry Ewing, editor of Prog Magazine. Also included is a 48-page book containing many never-before-seen photos taken directly from the Emerson family archive. The list of CDs appears below the Amazon links. The complete track list is available here.

PART ONE: THE EARLY YEARS / THE BANDS
DISC ONE

PART TWO: THE SOLO ALBUMS
DISC TWO: Honky
DISC THREE: Changing States
DISC FOUR: Emerson Plays Emerson
DISC FIVE: Keith Emerson Band

PART THREE: THE SOUNDTRACKS
DISC SIX: Inferno
DISC SEVEN: Nighthawks
DISC EIGHT: Murderock
DISC NINE: Best Revenge / La Chiesa
DISC TEN: Iron Man
DISC ELEVEN: Harmagedon / Godzilla

PART FOUR: COLLABORATIONS
DISC TWELVE: Three Fates Project
DISC THIRTEEN: Beyond the Stars

PART FIVE: LIVE COLLABORATIONS
DISC FOURTEEN: Boys Club (Live from California)
DISC FIFTEEN: Moscow Pt 1
DISC SIXTEEN: Moscow Pt 2
DISC SEVENTEEN: Live from Manticore Hall
DISC EIGHTEEN: Off the Shelf
DISC NINETEEN: Live at BB Kings – 21/05/2004
DISC TWENTY: B.B. Kings – NYC – 21/05/2004 / The Keith Emerson Trio
Live At BB Kings